Machine-gun carriage



1929- A RICORDEL MACHINE GUN CARRTAGFI Filed p 1,927 6 Sheets-smatu y 1929- A. L. RICORDEL 862 MACHINE GUN CARRIAGE Filed Sept. 19, 1927 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 $11130, 1929- A. L. RICORDEL 1,722,862

MACHINE GUN CARRIAGE Filed Sept. 19, 1927 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 J y 1929; A. RICORDEL 1,722,362

MACHINE GUN CARRIAGE Filed Sept. 19, 192.7 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 2 July 30, 1929. A. L. RICORDEL MACHINE GUN CARRIAGE Filed Sept. 19, l927 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 i f/P/coro July 30, 1929. A. RICORDEL MACHINE GUN CARRIAGE 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Sept. 19, 1927 8 /Z@f Rico nfa/ Patented July 30, 1929.

'AUGUSIE LOUIS RICORDEL, OF PARIS, FRANCE, ASSIGNOR TO SOCIETE ANONYME LA PRECISION MODERNE, OF PARIS, FRANCE.

MACHINE-GUN CARRIAGE.

Application filed September 19, 1927, Serial No. 220,594, and in France September 30, 1926.

My invention hasfor its object a machine gun carriage specially adapted for anti-aircraft firing comprisin a stationary basis and a guiding support adapted to rotate round the vertical axis of the basis and hearing in its turn a toothed limb along which may move the front of the cradle of the machine-gun; the rear of this cradle the rear substantially at its center of gravity, pivots round its butt-end.

To equilibrate the weight of the gun I use a coil spring housed in the vertical pivot of the carriage and actin on a cam-shaped projection disposed underneath the cradle,

this cam being adapted to constantly afford a correct poising of the machinegun and its cradle, whatever the angle of the former with the vertical.

In view of providin a proper firing for any posit-ion of the machine-gun, I use two cooperating cams one of which pivots round 'a stationary point of the carriage and the I other is borne by the axisof-thatpart of the machine gun which causes the fire to flash.

Moreover my improved carriage may be I taken topieces so that the gunners may carry it easily. In particular, I have imagined an arrangement wherein the correcting device for anti-aircraft firing may be set immediately on the support.

A form of execution of my invention is shown by way of example on appended drawings whereof.

Fig. 1 is a side view of the carriage.

Fig. 2 is a rear view, wherein the guiding support is shown in a somewhat different position with reference to its basis.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatical plan view of the controlling device for the rotation of the guiding support.

Fig. 4 is a detail diagrammatical view of the site movements of the machine-gun,

Figs. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 are views of the disconnected parts of the carriage,

Fig. '10 is a perspective View of the carriage-with the correcting device secured to it.

adapted to rotate on the basis.

Fig. 11 is a perspective View of the corrector, in the position used for transportati'on.

Fig. 12 is a plan view which shows the mounting of the correcting device on the carriage.

Fig. 13 shows diagrammatically how the fire is caused to flash,

Fig. 14 is a rear view of a double carriage, v

Fig- 15 is a side view of a modified form of this double carriage.

The carriage comprises a stationary basis with its feet 2 and a guiding support 3 In View of this the socket 4 integral with the basis bears a toothed ring 5 (Figs. 1 and 3) meshing with a worm 6 connected through a rod 7 and a set of bevel pinions 8 with a handwheel 9 disposed in front of the gunner. This handwheel and the gunners seat 11 are borne bythe support 3. When the gunner rotates the handwhcel, he causes the guide 3 to move with himself round the ring 5. An axial tube 12 is engaged in the socket at and 5 and allowed to rotate therein thanks to the interposition of the ball bearings 1-3. The tube 12 is secured to the vertical li nb 14 rotatingwith the support 3 and provided with teeth meshing with the pinion 15 (Fig. 4) pivotally secured to the cradle 16 of the machine gun 17. This cradle is provided at. its rear with trunnions 18 adapted to rotate in the. bearings 19 borne by the support 3. The site movements of the machine gun are provided by the movements of the pinion 15 over the limb 14 and are controlled by the handwheel 21 which through the bevel pinions 22 causes the worm 23 engaging the pinion 15 to rotate. Of course any other equivalent means may be used for control-,

will provide for the equilibrium of the machine gun and its cradle whatever angle it is set at.

The firing (Flgs. l and 13) is somewhat diflicult to ensure properly under all firing angles. A pedal 28 pivotally secured to a part borne by the support 3 is connected pivotally with a rod 29wliich in its turn is pivotally secured to a cam 31 pivoting round the stationary point 32. On the other hand, the rotary part which causes the fire to flash and which varies according to the type of machine gun is provided with controlling part 33 which is also cam-shaped.

Evidently when the pedal 26 islowered, the cam 31 13 caused to rotate whereby the cam 33 is also rotated and the gun 1s fired. The

earns 31 and 33 areshaped so as to remain always in contact and to provide for the action of cam 31 on cam 33 to cause a sufficient movement of the latter for making the. firing of a shot certain. Near the pedal 28 (Fig. 2) are the foot-rests 34 for the gunner.

Asthe carriage is intended for firing against aircraft, 1t 1s generally provided with a correcting device which may be of the type described in the French Patent No. 629,442 filed on May 3, 1926, in the name of La Precision Moderne. I will describe it only in so 'far as it is, necessary for understanding how it may be set on the carriage.

This device is adapted chiefly to take into.

account, when firing, of the corrections due to the movements of the aircraft and also of the deformations of thepath of the shot according to the angle of site used.

This correctingdevice comprises mainly a cylindrical box35 (Figs. 1, 2, 10) which remainsconstantly vertical under the action or thearm 37 secured to it and pivotally borne at 39 bythe' cradle 16. To the arm 37 is pivotally secured at 41 a rod 36 pivoting round a point 38 (Fig. 1) of an extension of the limb 14. The four points 39, 41, 38 and 18 form a parallelogram motion which keeps the cylindrical box 35 constantly vertical. Inside the box a suitable block 42 is allowed to rotate and bears an arrow 43 which a gunner directs parallel to the movement of the aircraft. Under the 'bOX 35 and eccentri'cally with reference thereto projects a manconnected with the arrow and ending with a cardan suspension 45. The positionof the rod 44 and consequently of the cardan suspension is determined as to height and eccentricity by suitable control gears, according to the corrections to be brought to the sighting. The cardan 45 is connected with the rod 46 pivotally secured at 47 to a;

rod adapted to rotate in a sleeve 51 stationary with reference to the rod '36. The end of the rod 46 is pivotally secured to the rod 48 pivotally secured on the'other hand' to the platebearing the collimator 49 and pivotally secured to the rod 50 passlng through the sleeve 51. Evidently the collimater 49 will be set parallel to rod 46 and the arm 46 swivelling at 45 and moving with rod 44 will take any position with reference to the arm 36 parallel to the gun. Thereby the collimator may make with the axis of the gun any desired angle of correction.

It is very important that the above de- J scribed carriage may be taken to pieces into parts small enough to be carried by a gunner or on a mules back; Figs. 5 to 9 show these parts forthe form of execution described:

the basis 1 together with the rotating part 3 of the support (Fig. 6) the feet 2 which may be secured together (Fig. 8) and are adaptedto engage the recesses 52 provided in the basis 1; the limb 14 with the tube 12 (Fig. 5), the pedal 28 with the foot rests 34 and the pedal holder 53 passing over the spindle 54 borne by the limb 5), the seat 11 to be attached to the rotating support 3 (Fig. 9). v i

It is essential that such as the correcting device with its collimatorv should for transportation, becontained in a box and be adapted to be instantaneously set in a correct manner on the carriage. In view of this, the whole removable correcting device comprises (Fig. 11) the following parts: the cylindrical box 35 with its arrows 43, the cardan arrangement 44,45, 46, the rod 48, the collimator 49, the

the breakable part-s sleeve 51 secured to a U-shaped iron 55 adapted to be borne by the rod 36 which is slotted (see Fig. 10) for receiving the bolting lever 57 controlled by a handle58. On

the other hand a projection 59 allows the assembling of rods 36 and 37 (Fig. 12) and the U shaped iron 55 is provided at its end pivoting with reference to the box 35 with a hollow socket adapted tobe set over the projection 59. A lug 62 is secured to box 35 and may engage through its slot 63 a pin 64 borne by the arm 37 and v provided with a winged nut 70. I

The whole correcting device shown on guns are borne by two cradles 69, 71 disposed on either side of a single limb 72, a single device ensuring the rotation of the two. guns- If on the contrary the guns are fed through the side withv stripsof cartridges they maybe shifted as to height so as to facilitate the feeding as shown on Fig. 15. In view of this the gun; 74 pivots round the bearings shown diagrammatically at 7 5. It is kept parallel with the gun 73 through the rod 7 6 forming a parallelogram with the line joining two points on the pivoting axis of the two guns.

More than two guns may be borne by my improved carriage through a multiple cradle disposed on the side of the limb.

lVhat' I claim is:

1. A machine gun carriage chiefly for anti aircraft firing comprising a stationary basis, a rotatable guiding support borne by said basis, fixed bearings on said support, a cradle to which the machine gun is rigidly connected so that its rear end is maintained adjacent trunnions rigid with the rear end of the cradle and supported by the bearings of the support, a seat for the gunner borne by the supports, devices borne by the support to control the direction and site movements of the gun, means for controlling the fire, a device equilibrating the gun and cradle for all positions in site, a limb secured in a plane parallel to that in which the axis of the gun is allowed to be pivoted, a correcting device borne on rods forming with the limb on the cradle a parallelogram motion, and means to secure removable to each other the diiierent members of said gun carriage.

2. In a machine gun carriage as claimed in claim 1 an equilibrating spring disposed inside and round the axis of rotation of the support, a projecting cam on the underside of the cradle and submitted to the action of the spring, the cam having a shape such as will provide for the equilibrium of the gun and cradle for all positions in site.

3. In a machine gun carriage as claimed in claim 1 a tube secured under the support and disposed round its axis of rotation, a second tube closed at its top slidingly disposed inside the first tube, a spring urging the'second tube upwards, a roller inside the first tube above the second tube, a projecting cam on the underside of the cradle and bearing on the roller, the cam having a shape such as will provide for the equilibrium of the gun and cradle for all positions in site.

4. In a machine gun carriage as claimed in claim 1, a cam pivoting round a point of the support, a pedal borne by the support and actuating said cam, a part on the cradle adapted to control the fire of the gun, a second cam adapted to actuate said part and controlled by the first cam for all positions of the cradle in site.

5. In a machine gun as claimed in claim 1, a correcting device, a socket borne thereby, a rod pivotally secured to the limb at one end, a second rod pivotally secured to the first rod and to the cradle, a stud borne by the two rods at their connection and engaging the socket on the correcting device, a notched lug borne by the correcting device, a stud on one of the rods engaging the notch in the lug, an arm pivotally secured to the correcting device and a bolt for securing said arm on the other rod.

6. In a machine gun as claimed in claim 1, a second cradle disposed above the first one in the same vertical plane, means to secure invariably both cradles to each other, and a second machine gun borne by said second cradle.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

AUGUSTE LOUIS RICORDEL. 

